House Overwhelmingly Urges President to Involve Congress Now in Iran Nuclear Deal

House Overwhelmingly Urges President to Involve Congress Now in Iran Nuclear Deal

July 9, 2014

AIPAC applauds the 344 Representatives who signed a bipartisan letter to President Obama urging him to begin immediate substantive consultations with Congress concerning a final Iran nuclear agreement. The letter, initiated by House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Ed Royce (R-CA) and Ranking Member Eliot Engel (D-NY), stresses that greater cooperation between the President and Congress is essential given that any permanent sanctions relief requires congressional approval.

The Representatives state in the letter, “As the July 20th deadline for a ‘comprehensive solution’ to prevent Iran from acquiring a nuclear weapon approaches, we urge greater consultation with Congress on a potential sanctions relief package that may be part of a final agreement.” The letter further indicates that any final agreement “must verifiably ensure that Iran is denied an undetectable nuclear weapons breakout capability.”

The letter also refers to commitments by Secretary of State Kerry to come to Congress to secure legislative relief of sanctions in a final agreement. It points out that sanctions relief is not only related to Iran’s nuclear program but also to “Tehran’s advancing ballistic missile program, intensifying support for international terrorism, and other unconventional weapons programs.”